Thursday, October 13, 2016

"GHOSTBUSTERS" (2016) Review

"GHOSTBUSTERS" (2016) Review

I cannot say that the summer of 2016 movie season produced a great number of first-rate films. There were a few that really impressed me. But I cannot deny that it has seen its share of controversy. One of the two controversies that ignited this summer proved to be over the casting for "GHOSTBUSTERS", Paul Fieg's reboot of Ivan Reitman's pair of supernatural comedies from the 1980s.

The movie begins with physics researcher Dr. Erin Gilbert beginning her employment at Columbia University as a professor. However, her employment and bid for tenure is threatened when she learns that her former associate, Dr. Abigail "Abby" Yates had republished a book they had written together about the existence of paranormal phenomena such as ghosts. Erin decides to assist Abby and the latter's new partner, engineer Dr. Jillian Holtzmann, on a paranormal investigation. The trio witnesses and documents a ghost, renewing Erin's belief in ghosts. Unfortunately, Abby has posted a video clip of their investigation and Erin's reaction, causing the latter to lose her job and tenure bid at Columbia. She joins Abby and Jillian's project, but they are fired from their position at a technical college, when the director learns the nature of their research. The trio eventually open an office to capture and study ghosts above a Chinese restaurant and name themselves, "Conductors of the Metaphysical Examination". They also hire a dim-witted, yet handsome receptionist named Kevin Beckman.

Meanwhile, a MTA worker named Patty Tolan witnesses a ghost inside one of the city's subway tunnels. She contacts the "Conductors" and the group investigates. They witness, document and capture the ghost, using Jillian's proton containment laser, but their proof is dismissed. Despite this, the group continues its ghost investigations. Patty, who is also history buff, joins the team and provides a historic knowledge of New York City and a redesigned hearse dubbed "Ecto-1". The newly formed quartet slowly becomes aware of the fact that ghosts are being summoned by an occultist/mad scientist named Rowan North, who hopes to bring about the Apocalypse.

When I first heard that a reboot of the old "GHOSTBUSTERS" movies was being made, I simply groaned with dismay. I would not have minded a second sequel to the 1984 movie. But since one of the stars, Harold Ramis, had recently passed away, I realized it would never happened. But I was not that thrilled by the news of a reboot. And when I heard that the leads would all be women, I privately accused the film's producers (in which Dan Ackroyd is one of them) of resorting to gimmick casting. A lot of people did and the movie became shrouded by controversy. But I went to see the movie anyway, due to my own curiosity and the public hullabaloo over the four leads. And you know what? I enjoyed it. I enjoyed "GHOSTBUSTERS" so much that it has become one of my favorite movies of the summer.

Mind you, "GHOSTBUSTERS" was not perfect. I found a few aspects of it to complain about. One, I have slightly mixed feelings about the movie's antagonist, Rowan North. Rowan was an interesting character on his own. But I found it hard to imagine any living person going out of his or her way to commit suicide in order to transform into a supernatural being and bring about an apocalypse. That seemed a bit too much. I have to give kudos to Paul Feig for providing more details into the creation of the four "Conductors of the Metaphysical Examination" . . . or Ghostbusters. But it seemed at times that the movie's set up of the four characters sped by a bit too fast, despite the addition of more details. There were other moments in the film in which the pacing seemed a bit too fast. And I found the character of Dr. Jillian Holtzmann a little superficial. Thanks to Katie Dippold and Feig's screenplay, she seemed to have less depth than the other three leads. In fact, she seemed to mainly serve as the team's comic relief. I wish Feig and Dippold had done more with her character.

Otherwise, I had no problems with "GHOSTBUSTERS". One, the movie benefited from a first-class screen team. All of them - Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Leslie Jones and Kate McKinnon - had a great chemistry together. There were complaints that Jones' character, Patty Tolan, was not a scientist - especially since the actress is an African-American. I was thrilled that Patty was a history buff and avid reader, which is what I am. I was also a little teed off that many did not regard historical knowledge as "intelligent" as scientific knowledge. I can only assume that many believe we actually live in the world of "STAR TREK".

And although I thought the idea of a human committing suicide in order to become a destructive supernatural force was a bit too much, I must admit that I also found this plot line very original. And to be honest, this world needs some kind of originality in movies, which seemed to be really lacking in today's world. Even more original, the "Ghostbusters" in this film are not immediately acknowledged for their pursuit of the supernatural. The quartet keep encountering nay-sayers (including one portrayed by former Ghostbuster Bill Murray) and government officials in the form of New York's dippy mayor and two Department of Homeland Security agents, who want them to remain silent on their findings. Again . . . original, for this was never done before in the two previous movies.

What was the best thing about this movie? Well, I thought it was a bit scary - especially in the sequence featuring the Ghostbusters' final encounter with the supernatural Rowan North. More importantly, this was a damn funny movie. Hell, it was hilarious. Some of the movie's funniest moments featured the four Ghostbusters' interactions with their personal "dumb blonde" receptionist, Kevin Beckman, portrayed by Chris Hemsworth. Watching Melissa McCarthy's Abby Yates react to Kristen Wiig's infatuation with the idiotic and shallow Kevin was a joy to behold. Another hilarious scene featured the Ghostbusters' encounter with a poltergeist at a live music venue. This led to a very close encounter for Leslie Jones' Patty Tolan, who uttered one of my favorite lines:

"Okay, I don't know if it was a race thing or a lady thing, but I'm mad as hell."

But it is not surprising that "GHOSTBUSTERS" proved to be so funny to me. Paul Feig and the movie's casting director really did this movie proud with a first-rate cast. I have already commented on the chemistry between the four leads. Melissa McCarthy was in top form as the sardonic Dr. Abby Yates. I really enjoyed how she mixed her character's enthusiasm for her profession and her cynical sense of humor. Kristen Wiig provided a fine contrast as the more reserved Dr. Erin Gilbert, who not only renew her friendship with Abby, but also develops a hilarious infatuation toward the group's receptionist. Leslie Jones gave a sharp, funny and intelligent performance as the group's historian Patty Tolan. She was especially in fine form in the sequence featuring the live music venue. Although I had complaints about Feig and Dippold's handling of the Dr. Jillian Holtzmann character, I must admit that Kate McKinnon more than made up for their shortcomings with a very funny and entertaining portrayal of the character.

The movie also featured some very funny performances from the likes of Andy Garcia (who portrayed the dippy New York mayor), Charles Dance, Steve Higgins, and Cecily Strong. The movie also provided solid performances from the likes of Michael K. Williams, Matt Walsh, Zach Woods and Ed Begley Jr. Neil Casey gave a very interesting performance as Rowan North, who proved to be one of the most eccentric and odd villains I have ever come across. And then there was Chris Hemsworth. Many have expressed surprise at his hilarious portrayal of the Ghostbusters' dim-witted receptionist, Kevin Beckman. I was not surprised . . . just vastly entertained by his performance. After all, I have been aware of Hemsworth's talent for comedy for the past five years. Last, but not least, the movie featured some surprising cameos. The most enjoyable ones proved to be those cameos from the original cast from the 1980s - namely producer Dan Ackroyd, Bill Murray, Ernie Hudson, Sigourney Weaver and Annie Potts.

Yes, "GHOSTBUSTERS" had a few shortcomings. I will not deny it. But for me, it had a lot more virtues. More importantly, it proved to be one of the most entertaining surprises I have encountered during the 2016 summer movie season. I feel that Paul Feig did an excellent job in rebooting Ivan Reitman's two movies. He had ample help from the likes of screenwriter Katie Dippold and an excellent cast led by Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Leslie Jones and Kate McKinnon.